Half Moon opens with 'Almost, Maine'

Tuesday

Oct 26, 2010 at 2:00 AMOct 26, 2010 at 10:57 AM

At its core, "Almost, Maine" is a play full of stories about unearthing the strength and courage to reveal your innermost feelings. It's a very simple play, too, paced by character interaction and vivid language.

Timothy Malcolm

At its core, "Almost, Maine" is a play full of stories about unearthing the strength and courage to reveal your innermost feelings. It's a very simple play, too, paced by character interaction and vivid language.

So Half Moon Theatre, which is producing John Cariani's play to begin its 2010-11 season — starting Thursday — will be mirroring the stories with a simple presentation.

Props include "two chairs, an ironing board, a basket of clothes and, maybe, a couple cans of beer," said Paul Kassel, director of the play for Half Moon and associate professor of theater arts at SUNY New Paltz. There are no big set changes, and very subtle lighting work — a "certain whimsical quality."

That fits Half Moon's style. The company, which performs at the Cunneen-Hackett Arts Center in Poughkeepsie, is now in its fifth year, delivering professional performances with Actors Equity Association members to the Hudson Valley with an intense focus on talent.

Its "Almost, Maine" features just four actors — the bare minimum for this play: Donald Kimmel, Amy Olson, Geoff Tarson and Shona Tucker.

The play is a series of stories about romance in a quiet northern town, with nature — both human and environmental — sparking small and big moments. The stories require very skilled acting, and Kassel said Half Moon has that in spades.

"They're very organic. There's beautiful moment-to-moment behavior," said Kassel, whose credits include acting, writing and directing performances off-Broadway and regionally. He noted that directing the play is more about guidance, leading actors to move logically about the quiet world of "Almost."

"These little details, they all start to add up to an inner core about what really drives their desires or needs," Kassel said.

In the end, though, the four actors in "Almost, Maine" won't need much help. Par for the course with Half Moon.